Stockholm suburb ranked best place to live in Sweden

For the second year in a row, the municipality of Danderyd outside of Stockholm has been voted the best place in Sweden to live, according to a magazine’s annual ranking.

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Following Danderyd in the 2009 rankings, compiled by Fokus magazine, is Vellinge in southwestern Sweden, with the nearby Stockholm suburbs of Täby and Lidingö coming in third and fourth place, respectively.

Lagging at the bottom of the list is Munkfors municipality in Värmland in west-central Sweden.

According to the Fokus rankings, which measure 30 different criteria, including health, crime, taxes, and equality, residents of Danderyd are so healthy, wealthy, and live in such a safe community that their municipality has once again taken first place.

Danderyd residents have the country’s highest net worth and highest rate of voter participation. The municipality also boasts a high “equality index”, Sweden’s lowest level of unhealthy residents, as well as the lowest percentage of low-educated residents.

Munkfors, on the other hand, along with cellar-dwellers Filipstad and Hagfors, also both in Värmland, and Ljusnarsberg in nearby Örebro County, all have struggling local economies, high levels of unemployment and a high percentage of unhealthy residents, according to Fokus.

Among communities in northern Sweden, Åre municipality’s overall ranking of 15th place was enough o make it the top-ranking community in northern Sweden, while overall second place holder Vellinge is the best place to live in southern Sweden.

And Trelleborg, Sweden’s southern-most town, was recognized by Fokus as the municipality which made the biggest jump in the rankings.

Last year, Trelleborg was wallowing at the bottom of the list, but changes in the municipality have pushed it all the way up to place 133 in 2009.